Japan to Mull End-Sept. Lifting of COVID-19 Emergency

Tokyo, Sept. 21 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government is set to step up moves for lifting its novel coronavirus state of emergency at the end of this month as planned, it was learned Tuesday. The government is expected to make a decision Sept. 28 based especially on whether the strain on the medical system is easing, as well as experts' opinions, while studying the possibility of removing the COVID-19 emergency for all 19 prefectures under the measure including Tokyo, informed sources said. The seven-day average of new infection cases across the nation has been trending down, standing below 60 pct of the week-before levels recently, Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said at a press conference Tuesday, adding that the number of severely ill COVID-19 patients is also declining. "We'll make a decision (on whether to end the emergency Sept. 30) by putting our emphasis on how much the medical system is strained and analyzing the vaccination situation, the number of severely ill patients and hospital bed occupancy rates," the top government spokesman said. At a separate press conference Tuesday, health minister Norihisa Tamura said that the strain on the medical system is falling, noting that the number of COVID-19 patients in severe condition and new fatalities are on the decline. "Compared with the week before, it's clear that the amount of strain is slightly weaker," he said. In Tokyo, where the state of emergency has been in place since July 12, newly confirmed infection cases came to 253 Tuesday, down from 1,004 a week before and marking the 30th straight day of week-on-week decline. The daily tally in Japan's capital fell below 300 for the first time in three months. "We'll see if this trend is becoming solid," a senior official at the prime minister's office said. The infection situation is improving in many of the areas covered by the state of emergency, a government official said, adding that it will be possible to lift the emergency in the prefectures other than Okinawa, southernmost Japan, at the end of this month if the improvement continues. Still, a senior administration official said the lifting in all 19 prefectures including Okinawa is also being considered as an option, hinting that the government will study the possibility of replacing the emergency with pre-emergency status involving milder restrictions based on requests from local governments concerned. Outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is slated to visit the United States from Thursday to Sunday, and the closely watched leadership election for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party will take place Sept. 29. After Suga's return home, the government will decide whether to lift the emergency at a meeting of its COVID-19 response headquarters Sept. 28 after holding a meeting of a panel of related experts the same day, sources said. END